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While ripping CDs is a common activity performed by many software programs, even many advanced computer users don't know how to rip a DVD. Ripping DVDs (geek-speak for copying onto your PC's hard-drive) is good for making a backup of their content, or watching them on your PC.

Steps

Generic Instructions

Determine that you, in fact, have the rights to copy the DVD for your own personal use. It is not legal to copy DVD's for any and all purposes.
Obtain a DVD ripping program. Oddly, this is a bit easier said than done. Legal threats have deterred some of the larger software companies from distributing DVD ripping software. Thus the only software you will find will be from companies you may not have heard of. Google "DVD ripping software" for a list of options.
Launch the DVD ripping program on your computer. This is any program that can read DVD format, extract the digital information, then encode it into a file format that is readable on your personal computer.
Insert the DVD into your computer's DVD drive and follow the instructions instructions.

Using DVD Decrypter, for PC

Find a copy of DVD Decrypter, a free program that rips DVDs. Macrovision has recently acquired the rights to the DVD Decrypter program, and has since stopped distributing this program. Thus DVD Decrypter is no longer easily available. See How to Find a Copy of DVD Decrypter for suggestions on downloading it.
Install and Open DVDDecrypter.
Insert a DVD to be ripped into your PC's DVD drive.
Ensure that you have sufficient free space on your hard drive to store the DVD. Many DVDs contain 6-8 GB of files.
Open the DVD Decrypter program
Ensure the correct optical (DVD) drive is selected on the source pull-down menu.
Set the correct file destination. Under the title Destination, it should say Please Select a Folder. If you click on the folder icon to the right of this phrase (see mouse arrow in image below), you will get a standard Windows menu to select a destination folder.
Click on the start icon (see image below) to begin the ripping. You will be updated on the progress. It could take 10-15 minutes to rip your DVD (actual time depends on the speed of your DVD drive).
You now have the DVD unencrypted in a folder on your hard drive.

Video

Tips

If you want to burn the ripped DVD to a fresh 4.7 GB DVD, often you will need to shrink it first, as original DVDs usually contain more than 4.7 GB of data. Use the excellent freeware program DVD Shrink for this. It can produce a ripped DVD directory that fits on a 4.7 GB disk, without discernable change in image or sound quality. See How to Burn DVDs on a PC.
The ripping process could produce a dozen or more individual files, so it's often best to create a new folder on your hard drive for each DVD.
If you are using a Mac, use a software like Handbrake that will make it easier to rip a DVD. It will let you rip the DVD in any format (like for iPod or iPhone: MPEG-4). It creates one individual file on your Mac and saves it to your desktop, so there or no worries about having multiple files.

Warnings

Understand copyright laws in your country before ripping any copyrighted DVDs.
Understand that in the US the laws are unclear and conflicting, you might be able to rip a copy of copyrighted material for your own use under the concept of Fair Use. However, circumventing DRM may be illegal in and of itself, regardless of ownership of the IP or intent after disabling the DRM method. Read up on the DMCA and then contact your congressman!
Do not promote or partake in piracy. Although there is some dubiety over whether it is legal to copy DVDs for your own use, making copyrighted DVDs available in the public realm is against the law.